Gregor Kleinknecht

Practice Areas

Gregor has a strong disputes and transactional practice in art and cultural heritage law. He acts for a wide range of private clients, private and institutional art collectors, art dealers, commercial art galleries, fine art agents, funding organisations and various private and public institutions. Gregor advises on the contractual aspects of commissioning, buying or selling art, whether through commissioning agreements with artists, agency or gallery agreements, private treaty sales or consignment by auction, including advice on pre-acquisition due diligence and the application of artists' resale right. In relation to the ownership and management of art collections, he has consulted on matters such as the loan of artworks for exhibition, the use of artworks as collateral for financial transactions, and the restoration and insurance of artworks. When disputes arise, Gregor represents clients in relation to contract and title disputes, historical restitution claims, on questions of misattribution or authenticity of artworks and illegally excavated and/or exported artefacts.

Career

Gregor qualified as a German Rechtsanwalt in 1995 and as an English solicitor in 1996. Following a career at two leading international City of London law firms and at a US law firm, Gregor founded and led the boutique firm of Klein Solicitors. Gregor joined Hunters as a partner in the art, dispute resolution and business services departments upon the merger of the two firms in February 2014.

Professional Memberships

Gregor is a founding member and chairs the board of the Professional Advisers to the International Art Market (PAIAM), a member of the Institute of Art and Law (IAL), Art Law Foundation, Lawyers' Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation, Institut für Kunst und Recht, the Arts Club and the Fondation Maeght.

Languages Spoken

English and German

Experience

Acted for the shareholders in two Spanish and Swedish companies in a dispute with an Australian investment bank involving claims in excess of EUR68m. The case involved a jurisdiction challenge in the Commercial Court in favour of parallel proceedings pending between the same parties in the courts of Luxembourg.

Acted for several defendants in Alliance Bank JSC v Aquanta Corporation & Ors [2011] EWHC 3281 (Comm) (14 December 2011) on a successful jurisdiction challenge in the Commercial Court and in the Court of Appeal (Alliance Bank JSC v Aquanta Corporation & Ors [2012] EWCA Civ 1588 (12 December 2012)). The case involved 15 defendants and multiple claims exceeding US$1.1bn.

Acted for the English distributor of a German luxury footwear brand on the termination of their distribution agreement for the UK after a 35-year trading relationship.

Advised a German supplier of railway infrastructure components on a supply dispute arising from a metro rail project in the Midlands.

Acted for Aprilia in successful first instance and appeal proceedings (Spice Girls Ltd v Aprilia World Service BV [2000] EWHC Ch 140 (24th February, 2000) and Spice Girls Ltd v Aprilia World Service Bv [2002] EWCA Civ 15 (24th January, 2002)) in a high-profile dispute about a sponsorship and merchandising agreement in connection with the Spice Girls’ World Tour.

Acted for a French merchant bank in London-based arbitration proceedings against a German company arising from fraudulent invoice factoring transactions.

Acted as sole arbitrator in a London-based ICC arbitration concerning a joint venture dispute between parties from Spain and Monaco.

Acted for a German engineering company in arbitration proceedings brought by English investors arising from defects and delays affecting a turnkey biomass powerplant project in Scotland.

Acted for insurance policy holders in several Bermuda clause arbitration proceedings (policies governed by New York law with provision for arbitration proceedings under the English Arbitration Act 1996) regarding claims under product liability insurance policies valued at between US$240m and US$480m.

Served as UK member on the 2007 ICC Commission on Arbitration Taskforce on Controlling Time and Costs in Arbitration (https://iccwbo.org/publication/icc-arbitration-commission-report-on-techniques-for-controlling-time-and-costs-in-arbitration).

Acted as panellist in numerous UDRP dispute resolution proceedings before the Arbitration Center for Internet Disputes.

Acted for an American Ivy League university on all European trade mark matters, including licensing arrangements, trade mark portfolio advice and brand protection.

Advised a well-known American IT and technology company on worldwide trade mark clearance projects and brand protection in the UK.

Advised the owners of a landed estate hosting a country house opera on the trade mark and commercial issues arising from the departure of the opera company and the establishment of a new opera festival in its place.

Acted for a German technology company in a patent dispute and expert determination proceedings with an Isle of Man company concerning net-fault technology used at Grand Slam tennis tournaments.

Represented a leading company in the development of robotics on all technology, IP and the promotion of a ground breaking robot.

Revised terms and conditions of consignment and of sale of a London-based auction house and provided supplemental terms for the auction house’s first NFT sale and for payment by crypto-currency.

Advised a Swiss modern and contemporary art gallery in connection with a dispute with a London art dealer arising from fraudulent art market transactions.

Advised the curator of a renowned landed estate on numerous art loan agreements with leading national museums around the world.

Advised the trustees of a family settlement and owners of a valuable painting loaned to The National Gallery on its transfer to an English Heritage property.

Advised an Italian art collector on the terms of a private treaty purchase of a Banksy artwork from an English collector.

Acted for an American art collector in an authenticity and attribution dispute concerning a Flemish Old Master painting purchased at the TEFAF fair in Maastricht.

Acted for the heirs of a Hungarian art collector in Holocaust restitution proceedings against Tate Gallery before the Spoliation Advisory Panel.

Advised numerous artists on contract issues regarding gallery representation and commissioning agreements.

Advised two Middle Eastern governments on the recovery of illegally excavated and/or exported antiquities.

Advised on a dispute regarding a piece of artwork sold at auction whereby the authenticity was challenged.

Represented numerous families and HNWI on the loans of artwork to museums around the world.

Represented the buyer of a high profile piece of artwork valued in excess $100m.

Advised on the sale of a prominent and encyclopaedic collection of Islamic Silver Art.